Since the Utah Jazz couldn't give the Spurs more than four games in their first-round playoff series, coach Gregg Popovich staged a de facto Game 5 on Wednesday at the Spurs' practice facility.

The full intrasquad scrimmage was the centerpiece of a sweat-inducing, 90-minute workout meant to kill time before the still-to-be-determined start of the Western Conference semifinals.

The series could begin as early as Sunday or as late as Tuesday, depending on how long Memphis' series with the Los Angeles Clippers lasts.

“I'm sure Pop doesn't want to sit for a week, so we got on the floor,” guard Manu Ginobili said. “We went at it, and it was good.”

Ginobili said Wednesday's practice, the Spurs' first since closing out Utah on Monday in Salt Lake City, was akin to a training camp session.

That shouldn't be surprising, considering the Spurs are faced with more days off than they've had since camp ended.

Though players fear gaining rust in the space between series, Ginobili said the team plans to make the most of the hiatus.

“You get the opportunity to prepare a little bit more for whoever you are going to play,” Ginobili said. “Individually, you can work on things you haven't had time to do to work on. You gain in some regards, and you lose a little rhythm.”

Because of the short turnaround from the end of the regular season to the beginning of the first round, the Spurs went into the Utah series with a simplified game plan and abridged playbook.

That approach jibed with the “less is more” ethos Popovich employed throughout a lockout season short on practice time.

Given advanced time to prepare for the second round, Popovich said he will fight the urge to complicate things.

“At this point in the season, you are pretty much what you've done most of the year,” Popovich said. “The last thing you want to do is try to get smart.”

Pulling for Game 7: Predictably, Ginobili declined to name a rooting interest in the Clippers-Grizzlies series, except to say he hopes it goes the distance.

The better to wear out whichever team turns out to be the Spurs' next opponent.

“I think I prefer a long series,” Ginobili said. “Whoever wins gets a little more tired.”

Other Spurs took a more fatalistic approach to the question.

“I would rather it just play out like it's playing out,” forward Stephen Jackson said. “I don't wish it ended or wish it would go more. It's happening the way God wants it to happen.”

More time killing: A noted rap hobbyist, Jackson was asked after practice to compare the musical exploits of a few unlikely artists.

“Shaq is one of the best, probably the best athlete to do it until I came around,” Jackson said. “I think Deion Sanders, everybody liked him because he was that character. He was flamboyant, people kind of dug that song.